TG is a non-profit corporation located in the Austin, TX area dedicated to advising incoming college students and their families with the decision making they need to accomplish concerning school funding. While it continues to collect on almost 75 Billion dollars it issued under the Federal Family Education Loan Program, TG no longer originates student loans. The federal government killed the FFELP in 2010 and these loans are now issued directly by the U.S. Department of Education. That makes only one place to turn for federal grants for education such as the Pell and the FSEOG. Personally, I think this was a great move by the federal government which now offers a highly simplified and less confusing process for students. TG’s new focus concerns increasing educational access for students of all ages and providing counseling services to college students and their families on managing student debt. It continues to offer a good bit of grant funding for education including the Charley Wootan grant program. In fact, the non-profit’s philanthropy program offers five types of grants which provide a tremendous amount of dollars for innovative educational programs around the United States every year.

One major change took place with the Charley Wootan grant program earlier this year that drastically altered what it has done historically. Previously, students seeking college money could apply directly to TG for a Wootan Grant. For the 2015-2016 school year, the program shifted its focus away from individual grants and now supports colleges and universities. The funding still makes its way to individual students but is distributed at the local level by each school’s financial aid office. An application is still due to TG on a yearly basis, but now by the school staffers not by the students themselves. So, if you wound up here looking for information on how to apply as a student there is your bad news. This year, the Charley Wootan grant was awarded to a total of four schools. They were Houston Community College, Lee College, Lone Star College and Victoria College. Every school received $100,000 each which was used to fund Charley Wootan scholarships for students at those colleges. So, if you attend class at one of these four institutions there is your good news. Simply walk into your student aid office and find out how to apply.

This program by the way is named after the late Dr. Charley V. Wootan, the non-profit’s former Chairman of the Board who oversaw TG when the student grant program was first initiated. It was renamed shortly after his death in 2001 and continues to serve as a memorial to his work in education. And that’s quite a lasting legacy. Since 2000, this grant program has issued almost $30 Million dollars to help students coast to coast attend college in Mr. Wootan’s name.

On top of the Wootan Grant program, TG offers many other grants for educational programs. Direct impact grants generally go to schools and community programs. This funding is often used to provide scholarships or tuition credits for less fortunate students. Organizational impact grants are targeted towards non-profit organizations dedicated to increasing educational access rather than to schools themselves. Both schools and organizations can apply for strategic impact grants. This funding is used to help launch initiatives at both schools and community programs. All three of these programs offer fairly sizable grant awards. $100,000 is fairly common amount that organizations receive but is certainly not the limit. I saw several grants that were given out in the $300,000-$400,000 range on their website.

Lastly, TG has a research grant program. This funds research mainly into the educational shortcomings in under-served populations and how to make positive lasting changes in those communities. This is not individual funding for student research but instead generally goes to a non-profit that conducts this sort of research as part of their mission statement. Research grants typically are issued for anywhere between $50,000 and $200,000.

If you work with a school or educational program, I highly encourage you to look into all of TG’s grant programs. The impact this non-profit has stretches way farther than the Texas boarder. The amount of funding it offers is pretty huge and could make a tremendous dent in the funding you require to get an education program off the ground or keep one afloat. If you have any further questions about any you see here, visit TG’s website or just pick up the phone and give them a call at 1-800-252-9743. I’m sure they would be more than happy to assist you in any way possible.

Kipp is the Contributing Editor for Grantsguys.com, covering sources of potential funding in the world of grants. His mission is to assist people like you by locating and sharing private, non-profit and government grants. Got a question or a tip on a neat grant? Connect with him now at kippshives@grantsguys.com.
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